


Sunny Dates and Starry Heists

by NightFoliage



Series: Moonlight Drive Series [2]
Category: Magic Kaito, 名探偵コナン | Detective Conan | Case Closed
Genre: Additional Warnings In Author's Note, Aged-Up Character(s), Emotions, First Dates, Fluff, Getting Together, Identity Porn, M/M, Post-Canon, Romance, Spoilers, not movie compliant
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-26
Updated: 2020-01-08
Packaged: 2021-01-02 18:32:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,027
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21166196
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NightFoliage/pseuds/NightFoliage
Summary: Immediate sequel to Moonlight Drive.Their secrets are out: Shinichi knows who Kaito Kid is and Kaito knows that Conan and Shinichi are one in the same.Will this knowledge affect their decision to get together?Not at all, because there’s other drama that gets in the way.(In other words, Shinichi and Kaito have 99 problems in their lives but their relationship ain’t one of them. Most of the time.)





	1. What Comes After

**Author's Note:**

> Author's Note: Spoilers for Moonlight Drive. 
> 
> Okay, so if you’ve read the first part, Moonlight Drive, then you know that Shinichi and Kaito have confessed. But like the last chapter of Moonlight Drive, Conan and Kaito will have their romance WHILE Shinichi is still Conan (and of course by now, Kaito knows that Conan is not actually a kid, but Shinichi who is the same age as him). I'm going to keep to that same level of intimacy/affection/romance as the last chapter, but more of it in this story, so proceed only if you are okay with that dynamic. 
> 
> This fic is just a few things to end the last fic.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After the confession, where Kid runs away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: ~2.6k

Conan (no Shinichi, no, wait, he’s still Conan) runs a hand through Kaito’s hair. His hair is soft, so soft it almost pulls his gaze away from Kaito’s face. However, like a lodestone, Kaito's eyes draw him in. Nothing can deter him, not the wind nor the cold, and he continues to drink in the sight of the man in front of him. 

He’s met the phantom thief many times now over the years, matched wits and traded words, but never has he gotten a clear view at the man’s face. Now it was revealed to him. He took in everything, from the color of his eyes, the curve of his smile, the bags under their eyes, to the laugh lines that were starting to develop. Maybe it was because he’s a detective but each little detail feels special and important in his eyes. (Or maybe it’s because he’s in love.) 

SLAM

They jump and Conan whips his head around to see Jodie-sensei in the doorway of the roof. 

Right. Currently they’re running an operation to capture the Crows. 

He hasn’t forgotten, but he did concentrate on the more important matter at hand. 

The FBI agent stalks toward them, and Conan thinks about pulling away, until she says: “Do you need medical attention?” 

However, Jodie-sensei isn’t looking at him, but at-

“Not at all,” Kaito- no- Kaito Kid says to her. 

He’s already got his monocle and hat in place. More than that he has his mask in place. He’s no longer just Kaito. The phantom thief smoothly gets to his feet, casually brushing himself off. There is no sign of weakness that he showed once before. 

Jodie-sensei looks at the thief curiously before looking back at Conan. Her expression is puzzled. “Is he one of yours?” She asks. 

Conan nods, before adding, “He’s a freelancer.” 

Kaito scoffs softly, but doesn’t disagree. 

Jodie-sensei rolls her eyes. “Okay, Cool Kid-“ 

Conan hears Kid softly repeat the nickname. Ugh, he’s going to be hearing that one more often. 

“-How about we wrap everything up with the officers and make sure everyone’s behind bars?” 

Conan nods. The most important thing is identifying the men they captured and seeing if they would spill more information. 

Kaito Kid clears his throat. Both Conan and Jodie-sensei look at him. 

Kid gives them a tip of his hat. “My apologies, but I may have to ruin your plans. I still have a heist to attend to.”

Internally, Conan balks. The man is still injured, had been laying in his arms only moments ago. And he wanted to continue with the heist?!

Jodie-sensei has no qualms about voicing her concerns, “No. You shouldn’t take the risk, not when there are still Crows-“ there’s a glint in Kaito’s eyes at the name, “-around and the Japanese police officers are ignorant to what’s going on.” 

“But that’s exactly why I need to continue the heist. This isn’t all of the Crows, correct? You’re still capturing more? Then all the better that there’s bait to lure them out,” Kid says. Although his smile is pleasant and his expression mostly neutral, his eyes are hard and dark behind his monocle. Conan knows he won’t budge. 

Jodie-sensei seems to recognize the look. “Fine,” she concedes. “Tonight you’ll continue your freelance work. Afterwards, we’ll see about outfitting you with communication,” at this she glances at Conan. 

Conan nods. It’s not surprising that it’s his job to bring Kid into the operation. 

“Hop to it, Kid Killer,” she says, almost teasingly. Then she gives him a wink before leaving the two alone. 

Ugh. Another nickname. Cool Kid is bad enough. He doesn’t know how he feels about Kid Killer making the rounds with the agents. (Although both nicknames are better than the occasional whisper of ‘Silver Bullet’ he’s been overhearing.)

He turns to Kid. The man looks picturesque, as always, all white against the dark sky. He’s completely still, holding the same pose as the one he held for the agent, and his cape billows behind him, drawing the eye. 

Normally, Conan would think that the man was doing it to be dramatic, but judging by his posture, maybe the man is stiff, still affected by his prior injuries. 

Shinichi wants to tell the man to stand down, to stop, and get some rest. There’s no need to put himself in anymore danger. There’s no need to keep the fake smile in place in front of him. 

What Conan says actually says is, “So? Do you need a head start?” 

Kid smirks. “My, how kind of you, meitantei. But no, I have no need of a handicap tonight. Don’t worry your pretty little head.” 

Pretty?

Shinichi swallows. 

He’s been called meitantei or tantei-kun by Kid enough times that the nickname isn’t strange to him anymore. But ‘pretty’, that’s new. Cute, now he’s used to being cute. But pretty is meant for Shinichi, not Conan. 

Kid seems to recognize his mistake because he looks away a moment after the words leave his lips. “I’ll get going,” he all but mumbles. 

“Yeah,” Conan says, turning away. 

They share a look before they separate. Then Kid jumps off the roof and Conan shuts the door. 

Conan quickly makes his way back to the other building. He has to pick up his glasses, has to update the agents, and he has to school his face into something less Shinichi and something more Conan. The glasses help and he adjusts them every so often to remind himself of who he is right now. He’s Conan, the Kid Killer. He’s still in grade school, he’s too short, and he’s Kid’s kid rival. 

At the very least, he has to stop blushing. 

——-

Kaito Kid goes through the motions of the heist. He’s lucky he’s as skilled as he is, because nobody else would be able to do what he is doing now; running a heist injured and off-kilter. He manages to do a few magic tricks, his tried and true ones, just fancy enough to delight his audience. 

He’s slower and not as sharp (the night’s activities are catching up to him), but the audience doesn’t notice. But the Kid Task Squad is slower than normal, more hesitant, and they number less than usual. They’re thrown by the recent events and it shows. 

(Kaito is careful to note that Saguru is not among the officer, lucky for him. If he had been here, then not even Kaito Kid’s luck would have been enough to pull off such a performance. He wonders if Saguru is dealing with the men in black, the Crows.)

Nakamori-keibu is among his chasers tonight, leading credence to the fact that nothing is amiss. However, even Nakamori-keibu is affected by the night’s strange events. He’s clumsy today and off his game, perhaps even more so than the other officers. Kaito wonders what the agents must have told the officers. 

Their hesitation and split second indecision, while not noticeable to the unprofessional eye, gives him the edge he needs. The audience ooo’s and ahh’s at his magic like usual, helping his performance. 

During the heist, he keeps an eye on Shi- Conan. The detective is doing a good job as the Kid Killer (and his ally). He’s just helpful enough that the officers listening to his directions can follow Kid, but not so helpful as to reveal Kaito Kid’s final trick. (Surely, Shi- Conan has it already figured out.)

The detective’s gaze is sharp and heavy. The hairs on his neck stand on end, his heart beats faster, and Kid knows if he turns to look, then those intense eyes will be staring straight at him. 

Even though the body is Conan, knowing that it’s Shinichi- 

There’s a different air to the heist tonight. 

Eventually, he closes the act and steals the jewel. Kid slips away from the crowd and the officers, taking his exit route out. But when he reaches the rooftop, he finds Conan waiting for him. Kaito isn’t surprised by the turn of events. 

Conan holds his hand out. 

Kaito’s lips curl up into a smile. He makes the jewel disappear. “Ah, ah, ah. You don’t think I’m going to make things easy for you, do you?” 

“Oh, so you want to do things the hard way?” The detective shoots back, his shoes suddenly sparking. 

Kaito smirks, he’s not going to do it…

Conan smirks too and moves his hand to his belt. 

Probably not- okay, so maybe he would shoot him. 

Kaito doesn’t allow his poker face to drop, but he’s a bit uneasy. They’re- not dating, not precisely, but they’re together- well not together together, but they’re definitely more than detective and thief, right? Shinichi wouldn’t use those shoes and a soccer ball on him, especially now that he knows that Kaito’s heists are more than about stealing gems. Right?

But… this isn’t Shinichi, it’s Conan. And he’s not Kaito right now, he’s Kaito Kid. 

Suddenly, what they are is a lot more complicated than he thought. 

“Mah, tantei-kun,” Kid says, falling into old patterns. “You’re so quick to become hostile. Why-“ 

There’s shouting and the sound of footsteps approaching them. He’s out of time. The split second that Conan takes his eyes away is when Kid dashes forward. He checks the jewel- not Pandora, then he brushes past the tantei-kun, slipping the jewel into his pocket. Then he’s opening his glider and flying away in an instant. 

He makes a clean get-away. There are no snipers, nor obstructions in the air. The Kid Task Force is yelling at him and he can hear their voices getting further away. He should fly away before they decide to do something stupid, like start chasing him in their cars. (Would they? Now that they know he’s not what he seems?) 

But Kaito can’t help himself; after catching Snake, rounding up the Crows, finding out about Shinichi’s feelings, he can’t just leave without- he turns his glider around to make another pass of the building. The Kid Task Force looks at him in outrage (although many expressions are still confused). And Conan- 

Conan is holding up the jewel to moonlight, a pose he knows too well, although he has never seen it from an outsider’s perspective. The jewel is bright in Conan’s hand and draws Kaito’s eyes in. Even so, Kaito only has eyes for Conan. 

Conan’s gaze is steady and even from this distance, Kaito can tell the detective has a smile on his lips. 

Kaito gets the message. 

_ He can see right through me. _

Kaito turns the glider around and flies away. 

He’s overwhelmed- the sight of Conan in the pose and that smile- it’s too much for him right now. 

\-----

Maybe the shoes were too much? 

Conan watches Kid fly away into the distance. Only when he’s too far away to see does he put his arm down. 

He had been trying to keep things normal between them, which meant looking like he was attempting to capture Kid in front of the police officers. However, Kid had been off his game tonight (not that Conan could blame him) and he had helped run interference. However, maybe he should have acted a little differently on the rooftop. They had been alone, he could have used the chance to talk instead of their usual banter…

Clearly, the other man wanted to talk to him too based on that fly by. Kaito Kid would never risk that normally. 

But Kaito would risk that for him. 

Now they’re separated and Conan didn’t get the chance to talk to him or the chance to exchange contact information. 

He knows they’re _ something _, but it would have been nice to talk things out. 

“Oh, Kid Killer! You got the jewel!” 

Conan jumps as one of the officers addresses him. He quickly schools his expression into something a little more childish. “I think Kid slipped it into my pocket,” he says, adding in a note of frustration. He tries to be like he normally is, glad to get the jewel back, but frustrated at losing the thief. (Although his and Kid’s relationship had moved past that long ago.) 

The officer takes the proffered jewel, then turns to Nakamori-keibu. He gives the man a salute, “Keibu!” 

Nakamori-keibu rips his eyes away from the skyline. His expression is- weighty. The man had definitely been distracted and confused this night. The inspector wipes away his heavy expression and falls into his usual role. 

“Good job,” the inspector says, giving the man a salute back. He also gives Conan a nod and ruffles his hair. 

Then he starts giving his usual rousing speech about how they would catch Kid next time, but they did a good job keeping the jewel. Like usual, the officers cheer, although some still are confused. However, afterwards they resume their usual clean-up. Conan goes downstairs with them and some of the officers offer to get a warm drink for him (really they were such softies, no wonder they had never caught Kid who could be downright ruthless), but he politely refuses their offers tonight. He’s got some things to think about tonight. 

“I’ll make sure to buy him something,” a familiar voice says behind him. 

Uh oh. 

“Saguru-niichan, I mean, Saguru-keiji...” Conan says, turning to face the young man. 

Hakuba is smiling but his eyes are cold. He also looks ruffled and Conan can spot rope fibers on his jacket. He must have been helping with the traps, and dealing with the FBI and the secret police. To Conan’s knowledge, the detective hadn’t played a large role in the raid, so he wouldn’t have known about Conan’s involvement, but now...

“Ohh, that sounds good. Hakuba-kun, treat Conan-kun to something good today. He got the jewel from Kid!” One of the officers says. 

Damn it. And here he was thinking there might be a responsible adult who would say it’s too late for him to stay out. 

“Is that so,” Hakuba says, mildly. “I’m sure we can find a place that’s still open.”

The officers wave goodbye, satisfied. Conan takes on a bashful grin, “Ah ha ha… Ran-neechan is waiting for me, so I don’t think-“ 

“Ran-san isn’t here,” Hakuba says firmly, his eyes glittering with interest. “Neither is Mori-san, Suzuki-san, Hattori-kun, Sera-san, the Detective Boys, Agasa-hakase, well, everyone who would normally accompany you to a heist isn’t here. But you know who is here? The Japanese Secret Police and the FBI. Hm? Do you know anything about that?” 

Hakuba advances and Conan wonders if he can run. He’s not quite ready to talk to Hakuba yet. While the man is trustworthy, he’s also a detective, and would ask about _ everything _. 

“Oi, Cool Kid!” 

The both of them look to see Jodie-sensei approaching them. Oh perfect. 

“Jodie-sensei,” Conan says with a smile. 

“Where have you been? We’ve been looking for you to go over the case files. And Sh-“ 

“AH!” 

“-is looking for you,” she finishes giving him a look. She glances at Hakuba then back at him, and gives him a pointed look. 

“Then I better go find him,” Conan pipes up. 

“Conan-kun-!”

Conan does not look back as he dashes away, leaving Hakuba with Jodie-sensei. He’ll pay for it later, but he really doesn’t want to be trapped with Hakuba. He’ll have to be careful in the following days in case Hakuba decides to confront him. He knows from experience the man is persistent. 

Okiya-san is waiting for him and Conan gratefully dashes into the car. He only sighs in relief when they pull away.

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Conan says. 

Okiya-san is doing his calm half-smile. “I wasn’t going to say anything.”

Conan sits back in the car, thinking that’s the end of it. 

“...But this feels awfully familiar.” 

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Conan snaps. 

The other man chuckles and Conan deliberately ignores him. They stay like that the whole car ride back


	2. Changes for Kaito

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kaito tries to return to his normal life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: ~3.4k
> 
> Date Published: 11/27/19

Conan's days after the heist are filled with secret agents, research, and more missions than he'd like. Conan and Ai had made a pact to reduce their workload, but this is one of the largest splinter groups they’ve captured after the first initial raid of the Crows. And now they’re scrambling to process them and to follow up on any leads. 

That’s not even counting the fact that the various law enforcement agencies are being forced to coordinate with more departments of the Japanese police force than before. Although he’s most known for his rivalry with Kaito Kid, Nakamori-keibu is a formidable inspector and had made sure that Division Two would no longer remain in the dark about the Black Organization. 

Luckily, Conan is left out from the coordination between the groups (not that most people would believe that he’s one of the masterminds of the operation). He’s able to continue his work with the police like usual, while other members of the bureau fill him in later. He doesn’t know what he would do if he were to be confronted by someone who knows him as grade-schooler-Conan. He respects Nakamori-keibu too much to play ignorant and he knows if Hakuba corners him, then he may end up telling him the truth. 

Hakuba suspects him of something. Maybe the other detective doesn’t know how deeply Conan is involved, but Hakuba knows that Conan is involved with soemthing that shouldn't be his business. Conan’s phone has been blowing up with messages from the man and he’s had to ignore them. 

He’ll try to avoid the man for as long as he can, at least until after he figures out what to do with Kaito. 

Kaito. 

With the help of the FBI and the Japanese Secret Police, Kaito Kid was exonerated of his past crimes in exchange for future collaborative efforts.   


It hadn’t been easy for Conan to convince all the law enforcement agencies to do so, but the Kid heist had been the most successful venture in capturing the at large Black Organization splinter groups. And so with Kid’s record of relative non-violence and with Conan’s backing, Kaito Kid was brought into the fold (at least on paper). Conan figured it was only a matter of time once the agents knew about Kid’s backstory. Many of them understood what it was like to be wronged by the Black Organization. They couldn’t fault a man for dressing up as a thief and doing non-violent crimes, after all, it was safer than what some of the others had been doing.

Thank goodness Conan gotten that taken care of. (After all, a thief and a detective wouldn’t have worked out, but now…)

Now Conan, Shinichi, has to decide how to explain all of this to Kaito.   


——-

Kaito has been in a fugue after the heist. 

When he had flown away after the second pass over the rooftop, he had been flying aimlessly, lost in his thoughts. Only Jii-chan’s voice in his ear brought him back to reality and back to the ground. From there, he had been bustled back to the shop where Jii took care of him, feeding him a hot meal and helping him change, before bringing him back to his house. 

He’s lucky that Ginzo-san wasn’t back (probably still dealing with the aftermath of the heist) and Aoko was asleep for once. 

Finally alone, Kaito gets the chance to process what happened. 

Kaito should have been happy, elated, vindicated that he had finally captured Snake, one of the men that had been part of the reason why his father had been killed. 

And he is happy, incredibly so. 

But he’s also lost. 

He’s been Kaito Kid for so long. He had started to lose hope that he would ever get the chance to do anything meaningful against the men in black. Annoy them, yes. Delay them, yes. But capture them? Stop them? They had seemed like such a big, mysterious, untouchable group to kill completely. 

But he hadn’t let those thoughts scare him away from fighting against them in his own way. Maybe killing the group wouldn’t be possible for Kaito alone, but finding Pandora and destroying it would have been the biggest ‘fuck you’ and his best revenge. 

But now they’re captured. 

And Shinichi had something to do with that. 

Shinichi. 

What is he supposed to do about the other man? 

He’s- Shinichi is-  Kaito isn’t supposed to have met the man again. They probably wouldn't have crossed paths again, unless Kaito went looking for him. But he couldn't, it wouldn't have worked out when he was Kaito Kid.   


But knowing what he does now…

He should have known that Edogawa Conan was way too smart and strange for a little kid. Kaito had done some digging, but hadn’t thought about how Kudo Shinichi’s disappearance had coincided with Conan’s appearance. It hadn’t been a clear coincidence, but it was suspicious when someone was looking for it. But who could blame Kaito for missing it, it was such an out there concept that it wasn’t surprising no one had caught on. 

And living with his then girlfriend and girlfriend’s dad while making that man famous? Kaito isn’t sure if Shinichi’s a genius or crazy. 

(Thinking about Shinichi’s sanity is much more fun than confronting the fact that Kaito is _emotiona_l over Shinichi living with his former beau. He doesn’t want to compare himself to Mori Ran, Conan’s precious nee-chan, but it’s a little hard not to. On the other hand, Shinichi  _ chose _ him.)

He knows how dedicated Edogawa Conan is (and how that reflects in Kudo Shinichi). Conan wouldn’t say anything he doesn’t mean. 

Those words on the rooftop…

Kaito has to stop himself from getting flustered. 

No one has ever- plenty of people have been interested in him (although his odd relationship with Aoko had discouraged others from confessing, Akako not counting), whether it be for his looks or his attitude, but no one was interested in  _ everything _ . They didn’t care for his obsession with magic, or the fact that he was smart, or his closeness with Aoko. Even Aoko, who loved him as Kaito, hated Kaito Kid. And those who loved Kid, weren’t interested in Kuroba Kaito. 

No one knew him like Shinichi did. No one could understand him like Shinichi could. And no one saw through him like Shinichi did. 

Kaito has always been confident in what he should do next, but now he’s adrift; both with if he should continue to be Kaito Kid and what to do with Shinichi. 

The next few days fly by while Kaito waffles over what to do. 

Luckily, his behavior goes unnoticed by most of his friends. Saguru and Ginzo-san are distracted by their work. And Kaito explains just enough to Akako that she takes pity on him. She runs interference with Aoko, who is busy worrying about her father and boyfriend. As a result, Kaito is allowed a few days without his poker face. 

However, that all comes to a head when he’s attacked. 

He’s walking out of class, one that he doesn’t share with Aoko, when he’s pulled into the space between two buildings. Kaito struggles, but isn’t able to fight off his assailant. Wait- should he fight? What if it’s the men in black and they start killing indiscriminately? He can’t let that happen, so instead of calling for help, Kaito struggles harder. 

With a quick move, his assailant turns his around, shoving his back against the wall. All the air leaves his lungs, so Kaito couldn’t even scream if he wanted to. However the one in front of him is not a man in black, but Saguru. 

Kaito should be able to relax, but all is not well. Saguru has deep circles under his eyes and his normally impeccable appearance is distinctly rumpled. His hair is fluffed as if he has been running his hand through it continuously. His jacket has creases in one direction, the side with his pocket watch. Kaito knows that’s one of the man’s nervous habits, checking the time as a means to reassure himself. The police work must really be taking a toll on him.

Saguru’s eyes are red from lack of sleep and when he isn’t blinking, his eyes are wide to keep himself awake. He looks.. crazed. 

Kaito hasn’t seen that look on him since their first days fighting as detective and thief. 

(Shinichi definitely looks better rumpled. The thought comes out of nowhere and Kaito shoves it away. He needs all his wits to deal with Saguru in this state.)

“Did you know?” Saguru demands. 

Kaito immediately holds his hands up in a placating gesture. He relaxes his body and tries to radiate an ‘everything is okay’ sort of aura. “Mah.. why don’t you calm down-“ 

Saguru shakes his head. “Kaito, why didn’t you tell me?” He practically chokes out. 

Kaito. 

Saguru’s using his given name immediately, no playing around. This is serious. Suddenly, things are looking less like a fight or an interrogation like he thought. 

“Saguru..?” He asks, tentatively as he tests the water. Will his manner irritate the man or reassure him? Kaito looks intently at the man trying to radiate understanding. He’s trying to let the other man know that he realizes that wherever ‘this’ is, is serious, even if he doesn’t know  what  _this_ is. 

In a second, Saguru is pulling himself back to rights, gently fixing his clothes and his hair. His demeanor is back to being a casual know-it-all detective and his hands are in his pockets as if he didn’t just pull Kaito into an alley and shove him into the wall. 

Kaito stumbles forward at the abrupt change, but the detective catches him. 

“Why don’t we grab lunch together?” Saguru says as he helps fix up Kaito’s appearance. “It’ll be my treat today.” 

“Eh?” Kaito has no idea where this is going, but he doesn’t think being alone with the man is a good idea. (Not that he’s in any danger, but this reminds him of the time they went to fifteen different stores in three different cities in order to pick out White Day chocolate for the girls. The man can and does go overboard.) 

Saguru receives a text and shows Kaito a message. Kaito reads aloud:  


“You boys have a nice lunch! It’s a girls only lunch for us! From Aoko and Akako.” 

He check to make sure the message is indeed from Aoko and winces when it is.   


Oh boy, there’s no getting out of this one. 

So, Kaito follows Saguru to a place that has good takeout. The detective orders Kaito’s favorite (desert and all) and even forgoes eating fi-  _ that  _ for Kaito’s comfort. Kaito looks on, confused. 

When they coincidentally pass by Aoko and Akako, Saguru gives them a kiss each on their hands before turning away. Kaito makes sure that the two of them see him wave goodbye (just in case he disappears). Aoko looks happy to see them spend time together, while Akako looks at them curiously. She must not know what’s happening either. 

It must be a police matter. 

Saguru leads them to a table where they have enough privacy to talk, but aren’t totally alone. It’s a perfect spot to have a casual clandestine conversation. Kaito wonders how much thought Saguru has put into all of this.   


When they take a seat, Saguru distributes their meals without speaking. Kaito takes a seat and starts digging in. Saguru doesn’t settle right away and goes to buy drinks. He comes back with a can of tea for himself and a melon soda for Kaito, even though Kaito knows for a fact that the detective thinks the beverage is a crime against nature (too sweet and it didn’t even taste like real melon). It’s not Kaito’s favorite (in fact, he normally only drinks it to annoy Saguru), but he gets the gesture that Saguru is trying to make. 

Whatever is going on with the police must be big.  


Saguru starts his meal and Kaito patiently waits for the man to start talking, eating his own meal in the meantime.   


Eventually:

“Kaito…” 

Kaito looks up. Saguru has stopped eating and has a hand in front of his face in a thinking pose. It reminds him of Conan (Shinichi). 

(Dammit, now's not the time to be thinking about him.)

“Kaito Kid,” Saguru says slowly, Kaito startles and concentrates on the conversation, “Has been exonerated for all of his past crimes.” 

“What!” Kaito jumps in his seat and Saguru jerks up too. They look around hurriedly to make sure no one heard them. Then Kaito scoots closer to Saguru and tries to act casual. He hisses, “ _ What _ .”

“‘For his services as a consultant’,” Saguru continues, as if repeating someone's exact words, “‘The FBI and secret police are exonerating Kaito Kid of his past crimes and any future crimes he does if they are in correspondence with these agencies. The man is a consultant whose specialty lies in nonviolent thefts and has been acting as a lure to characters of interest. Division 2 will continue to act as adversaries to the thief, in order to continue the ruse.’” 

Kaito’s mouth falls open in shock. How- what- why-  _ Shinichi.  _

He must say it aloud because Saguru repeats the name. “Shinichi? As in Kudo Shinichi?” 

“I never said anything about Kudo Shinichi,” Kaito sputters. 

Saguru’s eyes gleam, “Ah, but Aoko asked me if I knew any detectives with the given name Shinichi-“ Geh, Saguru managed to figure out the detective just by his first name? “-Who is about our age and wears a bow tie. From there it was simple.” 

Aoko.. that snitch. She promised not to say anything. She must have been using Saguru to do her own investigating. 

“Anyways, Kudo Shinichi doesn’t matter right now,” Saguru bites out. “What matters is-” 

And here, Saguru hesitates, “-is,  _ why _ Kaito? I’ve noticed outside interference during your heists, but I never pursued- I never realized the scale of what had been occurring. Why didn’t you tell anyone- why didn’t you tell  _ me _ ?”

Saguru looks at him, desperate for answers.  


Kaito keeps his poker face. 

_ Because you were trying to arrest me, _ Kaito doesn’t say.  _ Because I didn’t trust you or anyone else. Because I didn’t want anyone in danger once I knew how dangerous these men were. _

However, Kaito doesn’t say any of this aloud. Instead he says, “Does it matter? You know now,” he scoffs, more angry than the nonchalant he was going for.   


Kaito quickly schools his emotions. He didn’t realize he felt so.. strongly over the lack of trust and lack of understanding all these years. After all, Saguru only thought to ask about Kaito Kid’s motivations now?

And as Kaito thinks about it, he thinks about how he doesn’t owe Saguru anything in terms of an explanation. And then he gets angrier that Saguru even thinks he's owed an explanation.   


“Kaito-“ 

“Don’t you fucking _Kaito_ me. Why are you asking me now? You could have asked me anytime before. But now that it’s coming from the FBI you understand there’s something more at stake than a jewel?” Kaito hisses, unable to hold back the anger and rage.  Saguru jerks back. 

“Kaito…” 

His face falters and Kaito can see the hurt in his eyes. 

However, that only serves to make him angrier. 

“Nope, I’m done here,” Kaito says and he jumps up, taking his food with him. 

Kaito stalks away, barely registering the fact that Saguru is calling after him. He's so worked up that when his feet stop moving, he realizes he's already at home. He shakes his head; he can’t go back. 

His bag gets dumped on the couch and he makes his way to the kitchen. He settles into the kitchen table and continues to eat. No need to waste good food. While he’s eating, he doesn’t think about Saguru and how angry he is with him (even as he notes that Saguru ordered his favorite side dishes).   


“Lousy detective, bringing up things I don’t want to talk about…” Kaito grumbles. 

When he finishes, he dumps the trash and sorts the recyclables. 

The time reads into the start of his class. Kaito pauses, then he pulls up his phone and gives Aoko a quick text: 

_ Not feeling good. Must be what the lousy detective ordered :P _

He quickly receives a message back. 

_ Mou, Kaito, you can’t always get sick when someone orders  _ ** _you-know-what_ ** _ .  _

Phew. Saguru must not have said anything. Kaito relaxes.   


His phone chimes again.

_ Feel better, you can borrow my notes later  _

Kaito smiles, ruefully. Her class notes are terrible (even though Aoko herself is quite a good student), only translatable by herself, but he appreciates the gesture. 

With his classes out of the way, Kaito flops over on the couch. Normally he would ruminate (not sulk), in his room or in the Kid cave, but he can’t handle being stared at by the image of Kuroba Toichi or be surrounded by his belongings. 

Although.. Kaito wonders if his dad ever had to deal with something similar. Did he ever wonder if people didn’t care to ask Kaito Kid for his motivations? Or did he deal with those questions with a smile and a magic trick? Did his dad, did Kuroba Toichi ever doubt himself as Kaito Kid? 

(Or did the presence of those that knew help? His dad had his mom, the love of his life, and Jii, his faithful magic assistant. Kaito has the same people in his life, supporting him as Kaito Kid, but it’s different. They’re loyal to the original Kaito Kid, his dad, and that’s a distance that Kaito may never be able to reconcile.) 

Would having someone, a person dedicated to Kuroba Kaito, help him in troubled times?

Kaito immediately thinks of bright blue eyes and a cool intellectual mind. 

He swallows. 

Is Kudo Shinichi the man that would understand him? 

No, that isn’t right… Shinichi does understand him. Understands him more than anyone else in the world and that’s not even an exaggeration. Being Kaito Kid and Kuroba Kaito is hard, but he wonders how well Kudō Shinichi deals with being Edogawa Conan. 

Kaito stares at the ceiling. 

..If Shinichi asks him why he’s Kaito Kid, he wouldn’t get angry. 

The thought makes him turn on his side and hug one of the couch pillows. Kaito thinks about it again, tasting the idea fully. If Shinichi asks, he feels like he could tell Shinichi everything, no secrets (except for maybe the fun ones). 

And he imagines if he turned the question around, Shinichi would talk to Kaito too. 

Kaito buries his face into the pillow. 

No more thinking; he should just rest. 

(Later, he ignores a text from Saguru; a simple ‘ _ I’m sorry’ _ .) 

——-

The next few days are a study in how well Kaito can avoid Saguru without Aoko noticing. It’s more difficult than their high school days, because for one, he and Saguru are ‘friends’ now. Secondly, Saguru, Aoko, and Akako are dating. Saguru’s never too far behind if Kaito meets up with any of the girls. And lastly, there’s Akako's meddling to consider. She's always perceptive about the relationships in their group. Thankfully, she doesn’t confront him. (Kaito wonders if that is due to Saguru's influence.)  


Somehow, Kaito manages to make things go his way. He doesn’t avoid Saguru enough that Aoko should notice, but evades every attempt Saguru makes at reconciliation. Kaito has spilled drinks, jumped into bushes, or has run away.   


Despite Kaito’s (childish) rude behavior, Saguru faithfully sends him apology texts and buys him his favorite food. 

This continues for the next few days and Aoko picks up that  _ something _ is happening, but doesn’t quite know what. However, even as she narrows her eyes at them and pouts, she doesn’t step in. 

Slowly, Kaito’s temper cools. When he looks back, he thinks he was totally justified in his anger, but too har sh. They are friends and Saguru hasn’t tried to seriously capture Kid for awhile. It's not surprising that his motivations hasn't come up. 

Eventually, Kaito thanks Saguru for the apology and they resume their friendship.   


Things to return to normal. 

Except now that he doesn’t have his problems with Saguru to occupy him with, he’s suddenly thinking about what to do with Shinichi. 

Some time has passed since their last meeting and there’s been no communication between them. He supposes he could go see Conan, or maybe even rustle up a heist, but he hesitates. After all, Shinichi could come see him too. 

He goes back and forth on what to do. 

And then one day, the choice is taken out of Kaito’s hand. 


	3. A Willing Capture

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Conan asks Kaito out on a date.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: ~3.9k
> 
> Date Published: 1/8/20

Eventually things wind down with the law enforcement agencies and Conan finds himself with a life again. However, despite the recent changes, especially in regards to Kaito Kid’s change in criminal status, there is complete radio silence from Kaito. 

Conan isn’t sure what he was expecting, but nothing wasn’t it. 

(He will never admit to the myriad of dreams he’s recently had regarding this issue. Like the one where Kaito Kid would come to his window on a moonlit night and present him a rose- it was stupid. Or the one where Conan would get out of school and Kaito would be there, ready to take him and the kids out to ice cream- it’s silly, all of his fantasies are ridiculous.)

Ugh, maybe he should ask Ran for advice. Would that be insensitive? No, it should be okay, Ran got a kick out of hearing about his disaster of a love life.

And she always reminds him that she wants to hear from him more often. 

Conan’s at the professors, while Ran’s at the detective agency, so she should be free at the moment. 

She picks up on the second ring. 

“Shinichi? Is everything okay?” 

His body warms, yet his heart clenches. He’s so happy she cares, losing her would have wrecked him, but he hates how he’s worrying her even now. Hopefully he can change that when he’s back to being Shinichi. 

“Everything’s fine,” Conan soothes in Shinichi’s voice. “I wanted to call and give you an update.”

“An update?” She squeaks. “Like you mean about me and- O-oh, you mean about your case?” Ran stumbles. How unlike her. 

Conan’s brow furrows. “Is everything okay, Ran?”

“Of course! Nothing is wrong!” Ran says in a rush, which of course means something is wrong. 

But if it’s dangerous or related to a case, then Ran would tell him right away. Which meant that it’s personal. Should he press? Maybe she fought with her parents again. If that’s the case, he doesn’t think he should ask about it. 

Shinichi stays silent, willing her to say more. 

“I was just worried for you,” she says, her voice an octave higher than normal. “Did you do something dangerous again?” 

He considers pushing the issue, but decides to drop it. Maybe he’ll press later if the issue persists. Maybe she’ll feel more comfortable about talking to him after hearing about his love problems. “You know me, Ran. Since when do I not do anything dangerous,” he jokes. 

“Don’t joke about that,” Ran gently scolds. But he can tell it does the trick when she doesn’t sound so nervous.

“Well, you don’t have to worry about any danger anytime soon,” he says (hopefully). “But there are a few developments with my case and-” he pauses. Is it too soon? No, she deserves to know, “-And I will be coming back to Beika once it’s all wrapped up.”

“Really!!!” 

He smiles, her excitement and happiness is palpable. 

“Yes,” he says more firmly. “I don’t know when, but I don’t think I have to be in hiding anymore.”

“Oh, Shinichi,” Ran says with a sniffle. 

“Oi, don’t cry, Ran,” he says, feeling misty-eyed himself. 

“I’m just so happy,” she says, holding back another sniffle and failing. “You solved the case right? Thank goodness.” 

And that makes him smile, her unwavering belief in the fact that he could solve any case. “That’s right.”

“Can I tell people?” 

“Maybe just a few people. I’ll tell my parents and the professor.” 

“Okay. I’ll let Sonoko and Makoto-san know, she’ll want to plan a party. And my parents, oh, maybe Megure-keibu and the first division...” 

Shinichi chuckles. “I’ll be glad to see them all again,” he says honestly. 

“And I’m sure they’ll all be happy to see you too."

Shinichi swallows. It'll be different seeing them as Shinichi, he'll be losing the relationship he built with them as Conan. But he's finally moving on with his life and it isn't like he's losing them completely. This is for the best, he reminds himself. 

He must be silent for too long because Ran asks, “So why the change of heart? Did something happen? Or did someone convince you..?” 

He’s glad he talked to Ran about this and he’s glad he can talk to her about it now. “He definitely played a part in my coming back,” Shinichi admits. 

“I knew it!” Ran says gleefully. “Well, you should invite him to your welcome back party. I want the chance to thank them. Oh! How about we meet beforehand? I don’t want to overwhelm them. And I can- can tell you about things that are happening to me too.” 

God, he really does want to hear what’s happening from Ran, but he has to stop any plans she’s making in her head. “I wanted to talk to you about that,” Shinichi says with an embarrassed cough. 

“Oh? Telling me outright, it must be important." 

“Yeah, a little."

“So? What’s the issue?”

His mouth dries and he wonders where he should start. He obviously can’t tell her about Conan. There’s an unspoken agreement between them that they won’t talk about why Shinichi was gone. Which means he can’t (and won’t) tell her about Kaito Kid. How can he explain the full picture behind the person he lo- _ cares about_, without talking about Kaito Kid? And how he wanted to make the relationship work, despite their history?

What he starts with is, “I don’t have their number.” 

Lame, he knows, but it’s true. 

“Ehh?” Ran reacts predictably, perfectly voicing his thoughts. “That’s no good, Shinichi. I thought you hit it off last time.”

“We did,” he admits. “And I met them again recently. It was a coincidence and we didn’t get the chance to exchange information and…” 

“Is that all that’s stopping you?” Ran asks, confused. “Shinichi, what happened to being a meitantei, the Heisei Holmes, and-“ 

“Ran, don’t tease me. Yes, I know I can find his information easily, but isn’t that.. creepy? And weird? If he didn't give it to me?” 

After saying the words aloud, Shinichi finally realizes that this is an issue that has been troubling him greatly. If Kaito won’t contact him, then Shinichi needs to. But they’ve had so many false starts, that he wants to do it right. (No creepiness at all.)

“You’re learning, aren’t you,” Ran says, totally serious. 

Shinichi holds back the urge to face palm (it helps that one hand is occupied with the phone and the other with his voice-changing tie). “Of course I know it’s not okay.” 

“Hmmm, okay.” 

“Anyways, how should I go about- contacting them?” 

“How about through a friend? That’s the _ normal _ way,” Ran suggests. She makes an emphasis on normal (as if he doesn't know). 

Shinichi immediately thinks of Hakuba. Hakuba, who has been chasing after him for answers that he won’t provide. Hakuba, who definitely knows more than he lets on about Kaito Kid. There is no way the man didn’t know Kaito Kid's identity (the thief didn’t even wear a mask!), and Shinichi doesn’t want to add to the growing list of secrets Hakuba wants to interrogate him about. 

Ugh, he really doesn’t want to talk to the other detectives. 

“Any other suggestions?” He asks. 

“Shinichi,” Ran says, exasperation coming out of the phone like a flick to his ear. 

“Come on, what other suggestions do you have?” 

“...” 

There’s nothing but silence on the other end for a long while, but Shinichi is patient and knows that Ran won’t abandon him. 

“Well, how about making use of your detective skills, but in less stalker like way-“ 

“Oi.” 

“-with a romantic gesture?”

“A romantic gesture?” 

“You know, that infuriating but romantic way you would show up out of nowhere, but do something nice,” Ran practically mumbles the last part. “You know?” 

Shinichi actually does know what Ran is talking about. All the times he showed up ‘out of the blue’, he always wanted to make Ran happy for whatever time they had together. Kaito deserves the same. 

“Does that help?” Ran says softly into the phone.

“Yeah, Ran. Yeah, it actually does.” Shinichi says, mind racing with possibilities. 

“I’m glad. Just don’t go too overboard-”

“Ran~!” 

“Ran-san, we’re here.”

Two familiar voices interrupt the call: Sonoko and Makoto. Huh, he doesn’t remember any plans for them to come over. Maybe Sonoko wanted to go shopping or eat out. Ran moves her hand over the receiver. 

“Oh, Ran!” Sonoko’s voice is loud, even though Ran’s hand is muffling the speaker and Sonoko must be standing in the doorway. “I’ve wanted to see you my-”

“Shinichi! I have to go! Good luck! Bye!” 

The call abruptly ends and Shinichi is caught staring at the phone. 

There’s another ring and Shinichi- no Conan, drops the phone in his hand and his voice-changing tie for his other cell phone. It’s a text from Ran saying that she'll be out late with friends. Conan sends a text back saying that it’s fine and that he’s thinking about hanging out with the professor and Ai for dinner anyways. 

It works out perfectly. Now he can devote himself to figuring out the perfect outing with Kaito. He’ll ask him out, with flowers, maybe those blue ones the magician enjoys giving away. Kaito would probably get a kick out of that. Dinner at a nice restaurant, not too nice, but one with good food and good atmosphere. Oh and dessert...

\-----

Shinichi plans out a wonderful, romantic date (with several contingency plans). At the same time, he blows through his casework, making sure there will be no cases hanging over his head. He even considers calling Heiji to take care of any mysteries that may pop up the day of, but decides that would going too far (and he doesn’t want to be teased to death by the other detective). 

Then he searches for Kaito, the normal way. 

A quick search through all social media containing Hakuba, reveals Kuroba Kaito as a friend from high school. Kaito is going to the same university as Nakamori Aoko, Nakamori-keibu’s daughter (oof, Shinichi wonders if that’s how Kid always had inside knowledge of heist security) and girlfriend to Hakuba Saguru and Koizumi Akako (that’s rough, Kaito being the fourth wheel). His eyes linger on a photo of just Kaito and Nakamori Aoko and he can’t help but wonder how close they are. The two of them remind him of Ran and himself. 

Shinichi shakes his head. That doesn’t matter, what matters is this date. 

He figures out where to ask Kaito out (at the university in public), when (during lunch), how (with a small bouquet of blue carnations), and what to say (he has a basic script, but he’ll improvise it when he’s in front of Kaito). 

The only thing left is…

“You can’t give me the antidote!?!” 

“Of course not,” Ai says, giving him an unimpressed look. She turns back to her research and Shinichi- no, wait, he’s Conan, sputters. His whole plan is breaking apart if he doesn’t have the antidote. 

He briefly imagines coming up to Kaito as Conan- he can imagine Hakuba looking at the two of them in horror, Nakamori and Koizumi giggling at him, and Kaito looking embarrassed. 

Conan shakes the image out of his mind. It’s the worst case scenario, but- he wanted it to be _ perfect _. Kaito deserves his to be perfect. 

“What’s wrong with the antidote?” Conan asks. He knows now that if Ai is adamant about not giving it to him, then the antidote isn’t ready. But at the very least he wants to know th reasoning behind her decision. 

“You didn’t even last 12 hours as Shinichi last time. Your immunity to the antidotes I’ve been creating is growing stronger with each formula. I don’t know what you have planned, but the time you would spend as Shinichi might even be more than halved with the next dose,” Ai says. He manages to catch her eye in a quick glance and he sees something that he doesn’t want, pity. 

“I thought you said that there wasn’t any notable harm with this one,” Conan says, his voice low, but not accusing. He knows how difficult it's been for Ai, knows the amount of pressure and guilt Ai feels over not being able to cure him. He just needs to understand why. 

Ai shakes her head. “Last time it wasn't damaging. And I can't say for sure if there isn't any damage in the future. But the fact you were asleep for almost 53 hours afterwards-“

She pauses. 

The silence speaks for itself. 

“I suspect that the energy to age up is being taken afterwards in the form of sleep. It’s not something you can risk. Can you imagine what would happen if you were caught unawares and started to shrink?” She says, finally turning to look him in the eye. 

Conan closes his eyes, not because he wants to hide from the truth, but because he’s trying to control his expression as he imagines his dream shatter in front of him. 

She doesn’t offer him any platitudes or apologies, and he doesn’t need them. 

\-----

Conan takes one day to decide what to do. He’s already learned from his past mistakes that being indecisive is not acceptable and can absolutely ruin his plans, so he only gives himself 24 hours to panic. 

Then, he scraps his old plan and decides on a new one. He doesn’t consult with Ai, so much as give her warning in case everything goes wrong. She huffs at him, but doesn’t threaten him with death, so he figures he has her blessings. 

Then he waits 

The new plan can't come into effect until days later on a Friday. He’s planned it on a half day of school, and as soon as he’s out of class, he books it to the train station. Ai is there to stop their friends from following him and to take his backpack back to the professor’s. (Thankfully, they know how serious he is due to a certain ‘project’ in class.)

During the train ride to Ekoda, Conan runs his fingers over the small gift he has for Kaito. He hopes it’s well received. 

But there’s only one way to find out, and he makes his way to the university with time to spare. Conan confidentially moves through the campus. There are a few whispers in his direction, but his demeanor must be enough to stop people from trying to help him. 

Conan reaches the cafe.

His eyes are drawn to a group of four, zeroing in on the back of Kaito’s head. Conan can tell it’s him immediately, the man is animated, moving his hands and his body with the conversation. The other man says something that makes the others laugh and their eyes light up in delight. 

Conan hates to interrupt (knows how precious Kaito’s time with them must be), but he marches on. 

Hakuba spots him first. His eyes widen and he doesn’t hide the surprise on his face. Koizumi Akako follows the man’s gaze and her eyes start to gleam with interest (oh, he’ll have to be careful around her). Hakuba moves to get up, and Koizumi gets Nakamori Aoko’s attention. When Nakamori turns to look at him, there’s only curiosity in her eyes and no recognition. 

Conan hurries forward. He’s not here for Hakuba and he doesn’t want the man to accost him before he can talk to Kaito. 

Kaito finally turns around to see what the fuss is about and his eyes grow wide at the sight of him. 

Conan holds back a smile. Catching the man off-guard is always amusing. 

Kaito doesn’t make a move, but it’s okay, the first move is Conan's:

“I’m here for you, Kaito."

The lack of an honorific instantly puts the table on alert, although only the men know how serious it is for Conan to address him without ‘niichan’. 

Kaito immediately stands up. His mouth opens, but only a garble comes out, no words. 

“Boya, why are you here?” Koizumi asks, her gaze piercing. 

Softening his face, Conan changes his demeanor into something a little more childish. 

“He looks familiar. Do we know him?” Nakamori wonders aloud, tilting her head. 

“This is Edogawa Conan-kun,” Hakuba introduces. “You may know him better as the Kid Killer.”

The girls make noises of recognition. 

“But why are you here, Conan-kun?” Hakuba asks. “Are you here to finally talk about that case-”

“Like I said, I’m here for Kaito,” Conan interrupts. 

The statement, once again, stops everyone in their tracks. Hakuba, Nakamori, and Koizumi look back to Kaito who’s still in shock. There's a beat, and then Hakuba and Koizumi react, realizing what it could mean that the Kid Killer has come to confront Kuroba Kaito. 

“I know, Kaito,” Conan continues. 

“You know?” Kaito repeats. 

“Of course,” Conan says with a serious finality unfitting for a child. 

Hakuba and Koizumi jump out of their seats to stop him, but it’s too late, no one can stop him from revealing the truth:

“I know that.. you and Shinichi-niichan are dating!” Conan says, pointing at him with a wicked grin. 

“Shi-Shinichi and I are da-dating?” Kaito stutters, clearly flustered. His cheeks turn red and he’s unable to say anything else, or risk combusting. It makes Conan want to tease him more.

But before he can, Nakamori’s face lights up in understanding. “Shinichi! Do you mean Kudo Shinichi?” She asks, excited. The other two look at the procession, speechless. 

“Yup,” Conan confirms with a sly smile. 

“Ohhhh!!! Kaito! Why didn’t you tell me!” Nakamori says, giving him a hearty slap on the back. 

That manages to break Kaito from his flustered state. “Ow! Aoko!” Kaito brushes her arm away. He’s turning redder and redder under Conan’s gaze, which suits Conan just fine. “That’s, we’re- it’s not-”

Conan smirks and puts Kaito out of his misery, saying, “I think Shinichi-niichan is keeping it a secret until he finishes his current case, but I know he really likes Kaito.” Conan’s cheeks grow warm saying it aloud, but he powers through his own embarrassment. Especially when he see Kaito silently mouth the word ‘like’. “Although it’s not good to keep secrets, Kaito,” 

Kaito gives him a glare, although the effect is ruined by the fact that he’s trying not to smile. “Shouldn’t you blame your precious ‘Shinichi-niichan’ for keeping secrets?” He asks. 

“Oh, he’ll get what’s coming to him. What matters is how badly do you want me to keep it a secret from everyone else?” Conan says, willing Kaito to understand the game. 

There’s a flicker of interest in Kaito’s eyes. “Oi, what are you saying brat?” Kaito asks, allowing his lips to quirk up into a more Kid-esque expression. 

Ah, perfect. To Conan, it feels a little bit more like a heist now, where they’re feeling each other out and trying to read each other’s moves. He continues, “I mean, have you mentioned anything to your mom? Or how about his parents? Oh, what about Ran-neechan, the national level karate practitioner? I mean, you’re not scared to tell them that the two of you are dating, are you?”

“Is- is that a threat?” Kaito says, incredulous, but Conan still sees a hint of a smile. 

“Of course not. But I could really go for an iced coffee right now. What about you?” Conan says with an innocent smile (with maybe just a hint of mischief). 

Kaito’s mouth twists (hopefully because he realized Shinichi is indirectly asking him out on a date). “An iced coffee. Right, that doesn’t sound suspicious. Just coffee?” He asks. 

No, not just coffee. Conan (Shinichi) wants more, but he can’t say that aloud. 

“It’s a start,” Conan offers truthfully. 

Just the thought of them together, makes a hopeful smile spread across Conan’s face. He turns, so the others can’t see his expression. “Shall we go, Kaito?” Conan asks. 

Conan glances back at the man, who is smiling brightly at him. 

“Yeah, let’s,” Kaito says with a big grin. 

Nakamori keeps the rest of the group distracted with her excited chatter (Conan catches words like ‘blackmail’ and ‘can’t believe he’s dating’), while the two of them slip away. 

\-----

Conan doesn’t slow down and keeps a steady pace, one step ahead of Kaito. Kaito watches him, amused. Conan's whole demeanor is casual, but the tips of his ears are red. How cute. 

Kaito is elated at the turn of events; Shinichi coming to find him first (even if he is currently Conan). He has been more troubled than he wants to admit by their lack of communication. But now he’s so happy, especially after hearing Shinichi say exactly what he wanted to hear. (He likes him!) It isn’t just his imagination, there’s definitely something special between them

Kaito leans in, “So what’s this all about?” He asks, voice low and teasing. 

Unfortunately, Conan doesn’t jump or react cutely like Kaito had been hoping for. Instead, Conan moves to brush him away, except- his hand moves deliberately, skimming the side of his neck and face. The touch is quick, but Kaito’s skin immediately breaks out into goosebumps. He’s hit with the memory of how Conan had ran his hands through Kaito's hair on the rooftop the night when they unveiled their secrets. 

Kaito almost jerks back in surprise, but manages to pull away smoothly. He reflexively moves his hand to tip his hat- before realizing he’s not wearing it. 

Conan’s face smooths out into a blank expression. “Sorry,” he murmurs. “I didn’t mean to startle you.” 

Kaito shakes his head. He wants to say there's nothing to be sorry about, but he can’t quite get the words out. It’s just- that felt _ very _ intimate. 

They really should talk about everything before doing anything like that again. 

“Sorry,” Conan apologizes again. “I came here to-” his face flashes through a complicated set of expressions, “What I wanted to do was-”

The detective pauses. Then he takes a deep break, before pushing his glasses up. For a moment his face is shadowed, but Kaito can still see the faint flush on his ears. 

“I’m here to ask you out on a d-date, Kaito,” he says, only a single stutter signifying that he’s nervous. 

Thank goodness he’s nervous, because Kaito is floored. Kaito has dreamed of this happening, but he never imagined that he would hear it aloud. 

Kaito must be silent for too long, because Conan looks away. “I understand if I’m.. if it’s not okay when I’m like _ this _.” Conan gestures to himself with a sweep of his hands. “But I didn’t want to leave things unfinished. I didn’t want you to think I wasn’t.. Interested.”

Conan’s face does another complicated twist, which Kaito actually recognizes. This is an expression that he normally associates with Mori Ran. He doesn’t know if he should feel disappointed by the comparison, or flattered that he can affect Conan so strongly. 

“Yes,” Kaito jumps in. 

Conan’s head whips up in surprise. 

“I mean, yes, I want to go on a date. With you. Even if you’re Conan,” Kaito clarifies, hoping to wipe that incredulous look off Conan's face. It doesn’t suit him, not like- _ yes _, that look. 

Conan’s face breaks out into a warm smile. 

Kaito almost wants to look away, he’s not used to that look directed at him.

“How does ice cream sound?” Conan asks. 

“Ice cream sounds good,” Kaito answers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author’s Note: I try to do at least a monthly update for this fic, but because of the holidays last month I didn't get a chapter out. Plus I wrote a fic for an exchange, any HeiShin fans anyone :) ?


End file.
